The Glorious Hubbard Squash

This past fall was my first time seeing a hubbard squash. You really can’t miss it. It’s almost two times the size of a regular pumpkin in a dinosaur shade of blue green and bumpy and stange looking AF. It’s actually really exciting to see! “Can you eat it? What is it?” immediately came out of my mouth upon sighting it, which is a pretty frequent thing to hear me say now that I think about it…

They are frikkin’ yuge and, as it turns out, delicious. It’s got that lovely comforting squashiness to it, but a little warmer and slightly honey flavored. It did take a hack saw to open it, however. That could be a bonus or a major deterrent depending on who you are. For me it was a bonus, but definitely something I would only do once a week maximum. The good news is since it’s so frikkin’ yuge it takes about a week to finish all the meat that comes out of them. You could of course not cut it open and roast the whole thing right in the oven until it softens, but I wanted to save the seeds so… hack saw time. 🙂

I was incredibly pleased to find this specific squash because I’ve been getting more and more into urban homesteading. It’s not just a trend! It’s a lifestyle choice! Really though, having plenty of homegrown food all year round is a real joy. And since the hubbard is so big and has such a thick skin this is a great crop to produce and store through the winter adding it to soups or serving it mashed as a side or even as a vegetarian Thanksgiving center piece baked with stuffing in the inside. This is just such a cool storable crop to live on that doesn’t take any special pressure canner tricks or ph testing. Just grow it and eat many months later -it’s truly amazing.

So now for the nutrition: just one cup has 2 grams of protein (I usually eat about 3 cups per sitting though) and 2 grams of fiber, it has TONS of vitamin A, as well as vitamin C, calcium, potassium, manganese, B6, and a little iron. It’s has very few calories and is very satisfying, so it’s a good one for weight loss if that is what you’re after.

I only came across this at quirky farm stands, so you wont find it in your local supermarket (most likely) that might mean growing your own at home is the only way to try out this tasty beast for yourself.

Get your seeds here.

❤

Give it a grow and let us know what your favorite recipe is in the comments below.